Why?

First, please note that there is some overlap in this article with others on this site that address similar subjects, but the repetition is needed to clarify the subject under discussion.

It’s difficult to have inner rest in the midst of the storm of personal suffering when we don’t know why it’s happening. I’ve heard so many people over the years tell suffering children of God that ‘why’ doesn’t matter, “Just trust God, He knows what He is doing”. Of course He does, but hearing that doesn’t help much when the pressure is overwhelming.

Fortunately, God knows we need answers to our questions and He fully provides those answers. The problem is not a lack of accessibility to the “why” of God’s ways with His people, the problem is that few know what those ways are, and it’s easier to just to tell people to “trust God” and leave it at that than it is to search out the answers for them in the Scriptures. But in times of suffering we need answers, not clichés.

Another road block for many in this area of discovering God’s “why” behind all that’s happening is that the explanation, the answers we need, involve theology and in our generation theology is felt to be both impractical and irrelevant. It’s not impractical or irrelevant, but to many it seems to be because at first it doesn’t appear to be addressing the immediate need we are facing. Theology, however, is what the Bible is comprised of and the Lord knows that those who understand the big picture will have a much greater personal understanding of the details of life when they come up against the mysteries and confusion that make up our lives. How those details fit into the overall plan of God cannot be understood without first knowing what God’s ultimate purpose is. So, please bear with a brief theological discussion. It’s needed to open our understanding of the ‘why’ behind all God is doing in His people.

To understand any of God’s workings we have to go back to His original intent for all of us – for humanity. When we see the goal of why we even exist, we can better understand the process or means God uses to reach that goal.

The goal is Christlikeness (Genesis 1:26, Romans 8:28-29, 1 John 3:2). Sometime in eternity past God decided to create race of beings that would provide a visible expression of God’s indivisible personality. They were to be “made in God’s image”. An image is a visible representation of the invisible reality from which the image is drawn (cp. John 14:7-9; Colossians 1:15; Hebrews 1:3a).

When Adam fell, that image was broken, distorted. The world around us, including the world of humanity, is not a representation of the image or character of God. All the pain, injustice, cruelty and suffering that characterizes our planet is the fruit of the image of Lucifer. When Adam fell and lost his position as the one who was to have dominion over this creation under God (Genesis 1:26a) Satan assumed that role. He is, for now, the “god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4) and it is his image, his character, that dominates the thinking and actions of this fallen race,

“The prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now energizes the children of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:2)

“The whole world lies under the power of the evil one” (1 John 5:19)

When Christ was resurrected He became the “first born” of a new race of humanity (Romans 8:29b; 1 Corinthians 15:23). All those in Christ comprise a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). The old creation in Adam is destined for destruction (1 Corinthians 15:22). They will share the destiny of Satan, whose image they bear (John 8:44), in the Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:15). Those in Christ share His destiny (1 Corinthians 15:22b-23). Jesus is the “Second Man” (1 Corinthians 15:47); He is the “Last Adam” (1 Corinthians 15:45). The ultimate decision regarding heaven and hell is based on one thing and only one thing, whether a person is “in Christ” or “in Adam” (cp. 1 John 5:12, w 1 Corinthians 15:22; w Revelation 20:15). This is why the new birth must occur; we must be taken from Adam’s race and through spiritual birth be joined to Christ. The cross and resurrection are the restoration of God’s original intent – to have a race conformed to His image and to bring that race into eternal glory in Christ.

Now, the application to our present life and the suffering it often entails.

The process of taking newly born again children of God and shaping them into the image of Christ involves God using everything in our lives (both external and internal) to develop a Christlike character and faith in each of us. There may be, in our minds, a million reasons why we go through what we do, but from God’s perspective there is only one – His desire to fulfill His original plan in having a race of humanity conformed to His image. He has never given up on this purpose as stated in Genesis 1:26. He had to recover a segment of lost humanity through the work of the cross to bring this purpose back, but He has done so and now in Christ the purpose continues on into eternity.

Here’s one practical example of how this works.

Much of contemporary Christianity involves what I would call “conditional faith”. It’s not the same as Biblical, or Christlike, faith. A person being crushed by circumstances or illness or whatever normally prays, “Lord please either deliver me or at least give me the strength to endure it for your glory”. This seems both reasonable and self-sacrificing. But it’s conditional. This person is only giving God two options – deliverance or enhanced inner strength.

The Lord may do one of those, but if He doesn’t, then what?

“Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.

Then Nebuchadnezzar was furious with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and his attitude towards them changed. He ordered the furnace to be heated seven times hotter than usual.” (Daniel 3:15-19)

This is unconditional faith. They didn’t know whether God would deliver them or not, but they still refused to compromise their faith in the true God.

When we get to Hebrews 11 we see a gallery of faith heroes, some were delivered in the end, some were not, but all glorified God because all of them continued to trust in spite of God’s apparent absence - just as Job did, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him” (Job 13:15).

There is no way God can take us to a place of unconditional, Christlike faith without putting us into “no option” situations; where He is neither delivering nor strengthening. At that point we make a decision as to whether we will trust God because of Who He is, or whether our faith is dependent upon God being Who we want Him to be.

We may be looking for “Steps to Freedom” or “The Ten Pillars of the Victorious Christian Life”, or maybe “God’s Way to Financial Wealth”. But God is still, faithfully and consistently, working from the position of original intent – having a race of humanity conformed to His image. And that image in Christ involves above everything else, Christlike faith. This faith, which perfectly represented God’s supreme ideal for all of us, was demonstrated in the garden of Gethsemane:

“And He went a little further, and fell on His face, and prayed saying, ‘O my father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as Thou wilt.” (Matthew 26:39).

This was the pinnacle of Christ’s testing; the place where the perfect image of God was shown in the humanity of the Son. Jesus was filled with inner torment, so much so that “He sweat great drops of blood” (Luke 22:44). This is an indication of how severe the anguish of His soul was (Isaiah 53:11).

He was not receiving ‘inner strength’ to face the challenge at hand. Also, His disciples had fallen asleep and His enemies were approaching. He would be tortured and murdered. He did not receive deliverance from His horrible circumstances. Inwardly, our Lord was in torment. Outwardly, He was surrounded by enemies and ultimately crucified on a Roman gallows.

This is the ultimate test of our Christlikeness – of being made in the image of God. To stand firm in faith in spite of all that is happening within and around us. This is to the glory of God and is the top rung of our spiritual ladder. God is glorified when our lives express Christlikeness. He can see the realization of His original purpose when we demonstrate faith like this. God will never settle for less than what He has always planned to accomplish in this new creation. In order to bring this race to fullness in Christ, we must consistently be placed in circumstances that provide opportunity for us to say from the depths of who we are, “Nevertheless, not as I wilt, but as Thou wilt.”

Sometimes God will deliver us or strengthen us. But ultimately, God’s greatest glory and our greatest victory will not be found in deliverance but in the full expression of His image expressed and confirmed by unconditional faith in the face of impossible situations. This is the “why” behind the “what” of the painful mysteries in our lives. For the Christian who intends to press forward in his or her spiritual growth, this will be their experience from time to time until eternity frees us from the flesh - and God’s historical revealing of the Christlike faith of His children to the accusing forces of darkness (Ephesians 3:10) is not longer needed.